(PS3-C58) Rethinking Object Attachment - Development and Validation of a New Measure

Object attachment is the emotional bond or connection that we have with possessions. Although thought to be ubiquitous, when excessive, object attachment is presumed to contribute to compulsive buying and hoarding problems. Unfortunately, our understanding of this relationship has been limited by the constraints of existing object attachment measures. In this paper, we developed and validated a new self-report questionnaire, called the Object Attachment Security Measure (OASM), enriching our basic scientific understanding of the subject. We developed an item pool based on previous measures and consultation with 24 experts in the field. We then administered this measure to a large sample (Final N = 365) who also completed self-report measures of hoarding, compulsive buying, and previous object attachment measures. We found that a two-factor structure distinguished between secure and insecure object attachment. Both subscales showed excellent internal consistency and test-retest reliability over a two-week period. Additionally, they demonstrated excellent convergent and divergent validity, and criterion validity with measures of hoarding and compulsive buying symptoms. We also found that insecure, but not secure object attachment, was uniquely related to hoarding and compulsive buying symptomology. Our findings extent theoretical models, highlighting the role of insecure object attachment. Future research in both clinical and consumer behaviour fields should utilise the OASM, as encouraging secure object attachment could potentially decrease maladaptive possessions use.